Soft, elastic, pliable, antimicrobial envelope for cell telephones and other devices

ABSTRACT

An antimicrobial envelope made of a soft, pliable and stretchable fabric and shaped and dimensioned to accept and snugly hold a cell phone of a range of sizes and configured to effect antimicrobial action. A flat, rectangular envelope has two overlapping layers of fabric joined at two longer sides and one shorter side and open at the remaining shorter side, and is made of a material that is stretchable to change length and width to snugly accept devices such as a cell phone and is enhanced with a metal or metal compound having antimicrobial properties. The material is sufficiently soft and pliable to avoid or reduce scratching of the device and to maintain therewith for antibacterial action even into depressions therein.

FIELD

This patent specification is in the field of methods and devices providing antimicrobial action for cell telephones and other devices.

BACKGROUND

Cell telephones and certain other devices that are frequently handled tend to host bacteria that can be a health hazard. Proposals have been made for various ways to alleviate the danger with antibacterial fluids and/or to house the devices in cases that provide antibacterial action. For cell phones, proposals have been made to house them, when not in use, in cases of different sizes dimensioned to match respective sizes cell telephones and including antibacterial metals or ions such as silver and copper. See for example http://www.tech21.com and http://wwwBioCote.com. It is believed that such cases, specifically dimensioned for respective models cell phones, have not found widespread use.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

According to some embodiments, an antimicrobial envelope made of a soft, pliable and stretchable fabric and shaped and dimensioned to accept and snugly hold a cell phone of a range of sizes and configured to effect antimicrobial action thereon, comprises: a flat, rectangular envelope having two overlapping layers of fabric joined at two longer sides and one shorter side and open at the remaining shorter side; wherein said material is: (i) stretchable to change length of the shorter sides from 3 or less inches when unstretched to 4 or more inches when stretched and to change length of the longer sides from 4 of less inches when unstretched to 5 or more inches when stretched, whereby the envelope is configured to accept a cell phone that has front and back surfaces having a height and width greater than those of the envelope; (ii) enhanced with a metal or metal compound having antimicrobial properties; and (iii) sufficiently soft and pliable at the sides facing each other to avoid or reduce scratching said cell phone and elastic to snugly fit said cell phone when slipped in the envelope and to maintain contact with the front and back surfaces and at least two side surfaces thereof for antibacterial action at said surfaces and to reach at least partway into depressions therein.

According to some embodiments, the envelope can include one or more of the following features: the fabric can comprise a knitted fabric that can be a ribbed fabric, knitted or woven, and the ribs can be elongated along the long side of the envelope, or the fabric can be a terry fabric; and the open shorter sides can be shorter than the other shorter side and thereby facilitates retaining the cell phone in the envelope.

According to some embodiments, a method of effecting antimicrobial action on a flat, rectangular electronic device comprises: providing a flat, pliable, soft envelope of two overlapping layers of a knitted or woven fabric enhanced with an antimicrobial metal or compound and stretchable in at least one direction from a size smaller in area than an area of said electronic device to an area matching that of the electronic device, wherein at least an inner side of said envelope is sufficiently soft to avoid or reduce scratching said electronic device and sufficiently soft and elastic to snugly fit the device when stretched and to maintain contact with surfaces of the device when the device is therein for antibacterial action at said surfaces and to reach at least partway into depressions in the device; slipping the electronic device in said envelope through an opening in the envelope; keeping the device in the envelope for a time period of several minutes or longer for antimicrobial action effected by said fabric on surfaces of the device in contact therewith; an removing the device from the envelope after said time period.

According to some embodiments, the method can include one or more of the following: the providing step can comprise providing a flat envelope of a knitted fabric that can be a ribbed or terry cloth fabric or a stretchable woven fabric; the provided envelope can be a flat, rectangular envelope of said fabric joined at two longer sides and one shorter side and open at the remaining shorter side and wherein the open shorter side is shorter that the other short side; and the envelope can have a spongy inner side to facilitate contact with depressions or areas around projections of the device.

According to some embodiments, a soft, stretchable, antimicrobial envelope shaped and dimensioned to accept and snugly hold a flat device of a range of sizes and configured to effect antimicrobial action thereon comprises: a flat, rectangular envelope having two overlapping layers of fabric joined to each other except at an opening of the envelope for insertion of the device into the envelope; wherein said fabric (i) is stretchable in each of two transverse directions to thereby change from an area smaller than an area of the device to an area matching the area of the device and snugly envelop the device, (ii) comprises a knitted or woven fabric of at least one yarn enhanced with one or more metals or compounds having antimicrobial properties, and (iii) is sufficiently soft at least at inner surfaces of the envelope to prevent or reduce scratching the device and to extend at least partway into openings of the device or areas surrounding projections from the device.

According to some embodiments, the envelope can include one or more of the following features: the opening can have a larger dimension smaller than a dimension of the device but is configured to stretch to allow insertion of the device into the envelope therethrough and thereafter to contract to a size smaller than the dimension of the device to thereby facilitate keeping the device in the envelope; the fabric can be a knitted fabric and can be a ribbed or terry knitted fabric or a woven fabric; and the envelope can be credit card sized and configured to accept a credit card.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIGS. 1a-1e are, respectively, a front elevation, side elevation, bottom plan, top plan, and a section along line A-A of FIG. 1 a, of an unstretched soft and pliable envelope of a knitted antimicrobial fabric for a cell telephone, according to some embodiments.

FIGS. 2a-2e are, respectively, a front elevation, side elevation view, bottom plan, top plan, and a section along line A-A of FIG. 2a of a stretched state of an envelope with a cell telephone inside, according to some embodiments.

FIGS. 3a and 3b are, respectively, like FIGS. 1a and 2a but illustrate an antimicrobial envelope made of a woven rather than knitted fabric.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLES

A detailed description of examples of preferred embodiments is provided below. While several embodiments are described, the new subject matter described in this patent specification is not limited to any one embodiment or combination of embodiments described herein, but instead encompasses numerous alternatives, modifications, and equivalents. In addition, while numerous specific details are set forth in the following description in order to provide a thorough understanding, some embodiments can be practiced without some or all these details. Moreover, for the purpose of clarity, certain technical material that is known in the related art has not been described in detail in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the new subject matter described herein. Individual features of one or several of the specific embodiments described herein can be used in combination with features of other described embodiments or with other features. Further, like reference numbers and designations in the various drawings indicate like elements.

Referring to FIGS. 1a-1e in one example an envelope 10 for antimicrobial action comprises a knitted fabric of one or more yarns with an added antimicrobial substance such as silver, copper, zinc in elemental or compound form. In a nonlimiting example, a yarn may be infused with a copper salt. In the illustrated unstretched state, envelope 10 is flat and generally rectangular, with two shorter sides 12 and 14 and two longer sides 16 and 18. The fabric is joined at longer sides 16 and 18 and at shorter side 14 but not at shorter side 12, to thereby form an envelope open only at shorter side 12. The knitted fabric may me joined at sides in the knitting process or by stitching or by another process such as using adhesives. In the illustrated unstretched state, the inner surfaces 20 a and 22 a of two flat sides 20 and 22 typically touch each other. In front and side elevations, envelope 10 preferably tapers toward shorter side 12, to form an opening that is less wide in front elevation than the portion of envelope 10 below the tapered upper portion terminating at shorter side 12. The tapered portion can be a small part of the length of longer sides 16 and 18, such as between 1% and 40% of that length. Envelope 10 can be a ribbed knit, with ribs such as 24 formed at its flat surfaces 20 and 22, or a terry knit, such that at least inner surfaces 20 a and 22 a of flat sides 20 and 22 are soft and can extend at least partially into indentations of a device placed in envelope 10. The knitted fabric of envelope 10 is elastic in at least one direction and preferably in two transverse directions, such as in the horizontal and vertical directions seen in FIG. 1 a. Knitted envelope 10 can resemble a portion of a knitted sleeve or sock, and can be made using conventional knitting machines such as used for socks by Renfro (http://www.renfro.com) but set up to manufacture envelopes 10.

FIGS. 2a-2e are views like those of FIGS. 1a-1e but show envelope 10 in a stretched state, with a cell telephone 26 in the envelope. In this example, the knit fabric of envelope 10 is configured to stretch it two transverse directions, horizontally and vertically, to enable an envelope 10 of one size when in its unstretched state to accommodate different sizes cell telephones. As one nonlimiting example, an envelope 10 that is a rectangle roughly 3×5 inches in area in front elevation but can stretch to an area to accommodate cell telephones 26 ranging up to 5×8 inches in area and thickness from ¼ to 1 inch.

Envelope 10 is knitted using a single yarn in one example and plural different yarns in another example. The yarn used for at least a selected portion of envelope 10, and preferably for the entire envelope 10, includes a substance with antimicrobial properties that can be added to the yearn by processes such coating the yarn or embedding or infusing the substance on in and preferably throughout the thickness of the yarn. If plural yarns are used to knit an envelope 10, at least one of the yarns includes such antimicrobial properties. For examples of suitable yarns, see http://www.noblebiomateials.com http://www.purthread.com (offering PurThread yarn) and http://www.cupronmedicaltextiles.com (offering Cupron yarn or fabric). It is believed that PurThread yarn can retain antimicrobial properties after many (such as 100) industrial washing cycles. In a non-limiting example, envelope 10 can be made of 20% antimicrobial PurThread or Cupron yarn interspersed in 80% yarn that is not antimicrobial. Other relative percent content can be used, from a few % antimicrobial yarn to 100% antimicrobial yarn. According to information on the PurThread website, silver and copper kill microbes through multiple pathways and show synergies across a wide spectrum of microbes, with a key killing mechanism being interruption of the cell's ability to form the chemical bonds necessary for survival. According to information on the Cupron website, the company's proprietary copper formulations release copper ions and, when bacteria and copper ions come into contact, the copper ions weaken the outer membrane of the bacteria cell through the process of oxidation because copper is toxic to the inside of the cell and, eventually, the copper ions cause the cell to rupture so the cell then loses its vital structure and dies.

As noted, knitted envelope 10 is elastic in at least one dimension and preferably in two transverse dimensions and is pliable. The desired elastic characteristics can be achieved by the nature of the yarn and the nature of the knitting process, or by the use of an elastic material included in the knitted fabric, such as latex, or latex-free elastomers, spandex, various rubbers, texturized polyester, and/or nylon. The selection of yarn(s) and the knitting process and pattern preferably make at least the inside of envelope 10 soft to avoid or reduce scratching telephone 26 and preferably spongy to facilitate contact with surfaces surrounding projections from telephone 26 such as buttons and possibly with depressions in telephone 26 such as camera lenses protected by projecting surrounds. The elastic properties of envelope 10 are set to improve contact with telephone 26. As a nonlimiting example, envelope 10 is made to exert pressure on telephone 26 in the range of 4 to 40 mmHg. This compression can be essentially uniform over most of telephone 26 but can be set to vary such that compression at or close to open side 12 is greater than elsewhere, to thereby help keep telephone 26 in envelope 12 and resist accidental slipping of telephone 26 out of envelope 10. For example, if the long dimension of telephone 26 is less than that of stretched envelope 10, the open top side 12 of envelope 10 can slide over part of the top side of telephone 26 to thereby help secure the telephone in the envelope.

FIGS. 3a and 3b are views like those of FIGS. 1a and 2a but illustrate an envelope 30 made of a woven fabric enhanced with an antimicrobial substance such as silver and/or copper rather than made of a knitted fabric. Envelope 30 is made of an elastic fabric that can stretch in one dimension but preferably stretches in each of two transverse dimensions. As in the case of envelope 10, the same envelope 30 can accommodate cell telephones that differ in size. Envelope 30 can be made of two separate pieces of fabric sewn or stitched or otherwise joined along long sides 26 and 38 and short side 34 but open at short side 32 to allow a cell telephone 26 to be slipped in and out of envelope 30. According to some embodiments, envelope 30 may be made of a single piece of fabric folded to form the envelope and then joined at two sides, or the weaving process can be made to produce an envelope that does not need subsequent joining of sides or joining or only one side. The width of open side 32 preferably is less than that of short side 34, to help secure telephone 26 inside envelope 30. As in the case of envelope 10, the inner sides of envelope 30 typically contact each other when envelope 30 is in its unstretched state shown in FIG. 3a but are around and pressing against telephone 26 when envelope 30 is in its expanded state shows in FIG. 3b . Preferably, envelope 30 exerts pressure on telephone 26 like envelope 10. In other views, envelope 30 is like envelope 10 as seen in FIGS. 1b-1e and 2b -2 e. The woven fabric of envelope 30 preferably is soft and spongy at least at its inner side to thereby facilitate contact with areas around projections from telephone 26 such as buttons and areas of depressions such as lenses surrounded by a bezel. A nonlimiting example of a suitable woven fabric is 19% PurThread polyester, 12% Lycra and 69% regular polyester.

According to some embodiments, envelopes 10 and 30 can be otherwise like those described above but larger or smaller in size. For example, each of envelopes 10 and 30 can be sized to accommodate larger devices, for example a tablet such as an Apple iPad or a Microsoft tablet, or other devices larger than a cell phone or a credit card. As nonlimiting examples, each of envelopes 10 and 30 can have an area of 5×7 inches or 6×8 inches and accommodate each of the 9.7 inch iPad, the 10.5 inch iPad-Pro, the 11 in iPad-Pro due to the elastic nature of the knitted or woven fabric of the envelope, or roughly 2×3.5 inches to accept a credit card. According to some embodiments, each of envelopes 10 and 30 can be made smaller that for a cell telephone, to accommodate devices such as pens or combs.

Although the foregoing has been described in some detail for purposes of clarity, it will be apparent that certain changes and modifications may be made without departing from the principles thereof. There can be many alternative ways of implementing both the processes and apparatuses described herein. Accordingly, the present embodiments are to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the body of work described herein is not to be limited to the details given herein, which may be modified within the scope and equivalents of the appended claims. 

1. An antimicrobial envelope made of a soft, pliable and stretchable fabric and shaped and dimensioned to accept and snugly hold a cell phone of a range of sizes and configured to effect antimicrobial action thereon, comprising: a flat, rectangular envelope having two overlapping layers of fabric joined at two longer sides and one shorter side and open at the remaining shorter side; wherein said material is: stretchable to change length of the shorter sides from 3 or less inches when unstretched to 4 or more inches when stretched and to change length of the longer sides from 4 of less inches when unstretched to 5 or more inches when stretched, whereby the envelope is configured to accept a cell phone that has front and back surfaces having a height and width greater than those of the envelope; enhanced with a metal or metal compound having antimicrobial properties; and sufficiently soft and pliable at the sides facing each other to avoid or reduce scratching said cell phone and elastic to snugly fit said cell phone when slipped in the envelope and to maintain contact with the front and back surfaces and at least two side surfaces thereof for antibacterial action at said surfaces and to reach at least partway into depressions therein.
 2. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 1, in which said fabric comprises a knitted fabric.
 3. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 1, in which said fabric comprises a ribbed or terry knitted fabric.
 4. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 1, in which said material comprises a ribbed knitted fabric.
 5. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 1, in which said material comprises a knitted fabric having ribs elongated along the longer sides of the envelope.
 6. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 1, in which said material comprises a woven fabric.
 7. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 1, comprising a knit or weave of two or more yarns at least one of which is antibacterial.
 8. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 1, in which said fabric is formed by knitting one or more antibacterial yarns into a ribbed knit.
 9. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 1, in which the open shorter side is shorter than the other shorter side and thereby facilitates retaining the cell phone in the envelope.
 10. A method of effecting antimicrobial action on a flat, rectangular electronic device comprising: providing a flat, pliable, soft envelope of two overlapping layers of a knitted or woven fabric enhanced with an antimicrobial metal or compound and stretchable in at least one direction from a size smaller in area than an area of said electronic device to an area matching that of the electronic device, wherein at least an inner side of said envelope is sufficiently soft to avoid or reduce scratching said electronic device and sufficiently soft and elastic to snugly fit the device when stretched and to maintain contact with surfaces of the device when the device is therein for antibacterial action at said surfaces and to reach at least partway into depressions in the device; slipping the electronic device in said envelope through an opening in the envelope; keeping the device in the envelope for a time period of several minutes or longer for antimicrobial action effected by said fabric on surfaces of the device in contact therewith; and removing the device from the envelope after said time period.
 11. The method of claim 10, in which the providing step comprises providing a flat envelope of a knitted fabric.
 12. The method of claim 10, in which the providing step comprises providing a flat envelope of a ribbed or terry knitted fabric.
 13. The method of claim 10, in which the providing step comprises providing a flat envelope of a stretchable woven fabric.
 14. The method of claim 10, in which the providing step comprises providing a flat, rectangular envelope of said fabric joined at two longer sides and one shorter side and open at the remaining shorter side and wherein the open shorter side is shorter that the other short side.
 15. The method of claim 10, in which the providing step comprises providing a flat, rectangular envelope of said fabric that has a spongy inner side to facilitate contact with depressions or areas around projections of said device.
 16. A soft, stretchable, antimicrobial envelope shaped and dimensioned to accept and snugly hold a flat device of a range of sizes and configured to effect antimicrobial action thereon, comprising: a flat, rectangular envelope having two overlapping layers of fabric joined to each other except at an opening of the envelope for insertion of the device into the envelope; wherein said fabric (i) is stretchable in each of two transverse directions to thereby change from an area smaller than an area of the device to an area matching the area of the device and snugly envelop the device, (ii) comprises a knitted or woven fabric of at least one yarn enhanced with one or more metals or compounds having antimicrobial properties, and (iii) is sufficiently soft at least at inner surfaces of the envelope to prevent or reduce scratching the device and to extend at least partway into openings of the device or areas surrounding projections from the device.
 17. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 16, in which said opening has a larger dimension smaller than a dimension of the device but is configured to stretch to allow insertion of the device into the envelope therethrough and thereafter to contract to a size smaller than the dimension of the device to thereby facilitate keeping the device in the envelope.
 18. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 16, in which said fabric is knitted fabric.
 19. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 16, in which said fabric is a ribbed or terry knitted fabric.
 20. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 16, in which said fabric is a woven fabric.
 21. The antimicrobial envelope of claim 16, in which said flat, rectangular envelope is credit card sized and configured to accept a credit card. 